Greiner Packaging International has purchased the polypropylene-cup producing arm of Hipol, the Serbian state-owned industrial conglomerate.

Hipol’s cup producing sector employs 60 and has extrusion, thermoforming, printing and injection molding equipment. Hipol signed over ownership on 27 March.

In a news release, Austria-based Greiner said the acquisition will strengthen its presence in southeast Europe. It plans to increase the plant’s workforce to 150 within the next three years.

The acquisition is part of Hipol’s move toward partial privatization. Hipol, located in Odzaci, is Serbia’s only producer of polypropylene. It operates a production plant with a capacity of 35,000 US tons per year and manufactures industrial components, consumer goods, and plastics packaging. Its largest market is the dairy industry.

Greiner said it entered the southeast Europe market in 2004 and has since become the rigid packaging market leader. In that time, it has increased sales in the region to €20m.

Last year the company upgraded its facility in Bistrica ob Dravi, Slovenia. It also operates a plant in Nova Pazova, Serbia.